A Thousand Clever Lines
by Kayou Kuragari
Summary: Kurogane's finally returns to his world, leaving Fai alone, save for Mokona. Fai has flashbacks remembering his friends and the life they had the life he's being forced to leave behind. Please review!


Disclaimer: I did not make these lyrics up; they are from the song "Cute Without the E" by Taking Back Sunday.

_Hoping for the best just hoping nothing happens  
A thousand clever lines unread on clever napkins  
I will never ask if you don't ever tell me  
I know you well enough to know you never loved me.  
Hoping for the best just hoping nothing happens  
A thousand clever lines unread on clever napkins  
I will never ask if you don't ever tell me  
I know you well enough to know you never loved me._

Fai, Mokona, and Kuro-puu landed on the ground with a loud thunk. Three days before they had taken Sakura and Syaoran to Clow, and the three remaining travelers spent the time drifting from world to world. The buildings of the one they'd just landed in were old-fashioned- it was clearly one of the more ancient countries they had been to. They were lying on a lush green lawn, with an ornately decorated castle lying just past a gate built to look like fire. Fai looked at the ornamental designs curiously, studying the main building especially, when he heard Kuro-chan's startled exclamation. "This is… this is _my Japan_…." Fai looked at him blankly for a moment before he realized what those words really meant. For a brief moment he let the perpetual smile drop from his face; his aqua blue eyes grew slightly unfocused as he stared for the first time at the surroundings Kuro-tan knew so well.

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…… "Puu! It looks like…!"

"Sa- kura?"

Fai watched while Mokona greeted the newly awakened kid. The little creature, towel in hand, stood on the teen's chest and dried him off. Syaoran, apparently unprepared for such a welcome, looked at him (her? it?) blankly.

Mokona sobbed. "He doesn't grab Mokona!" He jumped into the air, where Fai caught him; the thing promptly settled itself on Fai's leg.

"SAKURA!" Syaoran cried, back in possession of his faculties.

The magician shrugged. "We tried to dry her off…"

"Mokona dried too!" it broke in.

"Even while you slept, you wouldn't let the girl go. So you- er-?"

"Call me Syaoran"**……**

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…… "If you want those two back, you'll have to have a match with me!" Primera called out.

"No way…." Syaoran said in disbelief, so softly Fai could barely hear him.

"You got to be kidding," Kurorin said derisively. "We got to fight something like that?"

Primera winked. "Uh-huh!"

Syaoran took a step forward, but Fai put his arm out to stop him. "Leave this to me." Eyes closed, he smiled.

"Fai-san…"

"I'll have my Kudan help me." He opened his eyes and summoned his Kudan, a huge bird with pure white feathers.

"Fai-san!" Syaoran cried.

"That guy has a Kudan, too?" Kuro-chan growled.

The magician stroked his Kudan's beak. "Well then, shall we?" His Kudan reared back and let out a deafening roar, before disappearing in a ball of light. Fai re-absorbed his "god", and flew off the ground. "I'll be back in a bit," he called to Syaoran and Kuro-muu.

Syaoran's jaw dropped. "He's flying!"

Kuro-pii rolled his eyes. "Seriously, these Kudans come in all types…"

"Flying!" Primella cried. "Not fair! Even I can't do that! If it comes to that… just watch! My Kudan-chan! Come on!" A pink loudspeaker appeared in her hand. "Take my Kudan-chan's attack!" Notes burst from the mouth of her Kudan and sped through the air toward Fai. All of them exploded at once, and Fai was temporarily blinded from the clouds of rose-colored smoke. Primella laughed, but stopped when the smoke cleared. The magician was completely untouched, still hovering in the same position he had been in seconds before.

"That was a surprise," Fai commented. "A Kudan can do that? This country is pretty amazing." He laughed as a sudden thought struck him. "That kind of attack would make Mokona happy."

"Amazing! Amazing!" cried Mokona as he dangled, twirling in the breeze, from the roof_. **……**_

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…… "We're back where we started." Syaoran knelt to the ground as he spoke and picked a small rock from the floor.

Fai stopped in his tracks and looked at Syaoran. "Hm?"

Kuro-wahn-wahn looked at the kid. "I know this place looks familiar, but we've never turned around."

"It's been a one way trip," the mage added.

Syaoran shook his head and held up the pebble. "I dropped this on the floor at a spot not far from the entrance," he explained.

Fai looked at the pebble. "Hyuu. Syaoran-kun, you're good!"

Kurorin's eyes narrowed. "What's with that 'hyuu' all of a sudden?"

Fai grinned his apology. "Sorry," he shrugged, "but I don't know how to whistle!" **……**

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…… The horses reared as the rifles came out of nowhere. The five companions were suddenly surrounded by angry townspeople, some carrying guns; of those, about half had their weapons pointed right at the riders.

"Who are you people!" someone, probably the leader, shouted at the group.

Fai racked his brain for an excuse, but was saved the trouble by Syaoran.

"We travel from town to town investigating old legends and buildings," he stated calmly.

Several of the guns lowered, but the leader was not convinced. "What do you do with this 'investigation'?" he snarled.

"We're going to write a book," Syaoran clarified.

"A book?" Several more guns lowered.

"Yes. Of course."

"Written by children like you?"

"No, written by him." Syaoran pointed to Fai. Without missing a beat, the magician bowed slightly and smiled.

"It's all true!" he assured everyone. Then, realizing they may wonder why there were four people, Fai hurried to elaborate. "This young lady is my sister." He pointed to Sakura. "The boy is my assistant. And him…" Fai's smile grew wider as he imaged the Kurotan's reaction. "He's the hired help." **……**

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…… Fai looked up from the pot of tea he was making when he heard the gentle thud on the stairs; Sakura

burst into the room a few seconds later.

"Good morning!" she called, hair flying everywhere, an anxious expression on her face.

"Morning, Sakura-chan!" Fai smiled, and picked up the kettle.

"I'm sorry! I overslept!" A clearly worried Sakura scrunched up her face.

"It's quite alright! We still haven't set the exact time the shop opens. Besides," Fai assured her, pouring the tea, "You're still not at 100 yet, Sakura-chan."

Sakura jutted her chin out and raised her fists in victory position. "I'll do my best to be awake at the proper time tomorrow!"

Fai grinned and waved his arms, ignoring the fact that he was still holding the kettle full of hot tea. "I'm cheering you on, Sakura-chan!" he cried. **……**

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…… Kuro stared down at his broken blade in disgust. "I knew it," he muttered. 'I knew this sword was to cheap for that technique."

Fai started to applaud. "Way to go, Kuro-sama!" He tried to stand and winced in pain. "Mm…? Something's a little weird with my legs…." Kuro-tin walked over to him. "But don't worry!" He waved his hand dismissively. "A wound this slight won't kill me."

"Not _won't _kill you," The ninja corrected him. "_Can't _kill you, right? Fai looked up at him, stunned. Kuro hit his scabbard on the rubble under his feet. Fai looked down and narrowed his eyes in a mixture of

worry, astonishment, and pain.

"You see," he continued, "In my career, if anybody comes to kill me, I kill them. If there's something I'm protecting, and anybody tries to steal it, I kill them. I can't even count the number of people I've killed. I don't even try to hide it anymore. But," Kuro put the end of his scabbard under Fai's chin and narrowed his eyes, "the ones I hate most in the world are the ones who still have lives to live, but who don't make any effort to live them." **……**

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…… Mokona hopped onto the bed and addressed Fai. "How is Sakura?"

"She's fine," he said as he pulled up the covers. "Fast asleep. She's been going full-out recently, only sleeping at night." He smiled at the sleeping girl next to him.

"Fai?" Mokona looked up at the mage seriously.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Fai said it at the world with the big lake…" Mokona seemed unsure how to continue. "If Syaoran laughs or has fun, nobody will blame him for it."

"Yeah?" Fai tilted his head to one side. "What about it?"

"It's true for Fai, too." Fai felt as though he'd been hit. "Nobody will blame Fai. Not Syaoran, not Sakura, not Kurogane, nobody."

Fai smiled and picked up Mokona. "Me?" he laughed. "I always have fun!"

"Fai thinks of other things even while laughing…." **……**

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Kuro stood up and brushed himself off.

"You're leaving now, Kuro-muu?" Fai asked.

"This _is_ my home country," Kuro-tan replied. He paused, and took a deep breath. "I'm finally back with Princess Tomoyo," he added, still sounding stunned. They were both silent for a moment.

"Well," Kuro actually smiled a little at his companion. "I guess this is goodbye." He paused for a moment, apparently waiting for some sort of a response from the mage.

"Goodbye, then," he added. The ninja paused a few seconds longer and, when Fai still didn't speak, he turned away from the magician and toward the gates. He stood up a little straighter and walked slowly away.

A few remaining memories flitted past Fai's eyes: Ashura's sleeping form in the castle in Seresu; Chii's slightly vacant, wondering eyes; the look on Sakura's face when they last parted; the slight waver in Syaoran's voice as he bid the ninja and mage farewell for the last time; Kurogane's face when he found out Fai had named him Big Puppy; the determination written on Syaoran's form when he first begged Yuuko for help; the perpetually sleepy expression Sakura had in their early adventures; the reactions he got from 'Kuro-muu', 'Kuro-rin', 'Kuro-tan', 'Kuro-chan', and every other nickname he could think of.

The thoughts came faster and faster: Sakura's face as she talked to 'the golden-haired princess', the way the rain mixed with Syaoran's tears after he realized Sakura truly didn't know him, how Kuro-tin pushed him out of the way to save him from Kiishimu's acid… how this was the last time he would ever see any of the people he'd grown to regard as friends again. As Mokona floated up into the air once more, Fai spoke softly, barely audible to even the ninja's well trained ears.

"Goodbye… Kurogane."

_Hoping for the best just hoping nothing happens  
A thousand clever lines unread on clever napkins  
I will never ask if you don't ever tell me  
I know you well enough to know..._


End file.
